I'll Walk
by Awahili
Summary: They were 18, it was prom night, and they had their first big fight. Ryelsi INSPIRED SERIES


Okay, I don't actually hate Sharpay, I promise. But in listening to Bucky Covington's song _I'll Walk_, I thought it fit perfectly for a scene I envisioned. So here it is.

* * *

Ryan had never hated his sister more than he did in this moment. They were staring each other down on the dance floor at senior prom, and Sharpay was nearly as red as her dress.

"Ryan, keep your voice down, you're making a scene," she barked.

"So what?" he shouted back "You're East High's primo drama queen, you should be used to making scenes by now. It is what you excel at after all. I cannot believe you said that to her." His tone was laced with barely suppressed anger, and he didn't care that the entire prom had stopped around them.

"I don't see why you're so upset. It's not like you brought her to prom because you _liked_ her," Sharpay scoffed. Ryan wanted to stay and let his sister know just how much he hated her at this moment, but Kelsi had already sprinted out the doors and he would hard-pressed to catch up to her now. So instead, he shook his head sadly.

"I hope one day you care about someone other than yourself," he told her simply, and then he was gone. Troy and Chad, in their quest to stand up for Kelsi, tried to get in Ryan's way and teach him a lesson or two for hurting their friend so badly. But Ryan, in an incredible show of strength and will, powered through the two basketball captains effortlessly. He was in his father's car and searching the parking lot in a matter of seconds, and on the far edge next to the road he caught a glimpse of a shimmering midnight blue gown under a street light.

"Kelsi!" he called out the window, imploring her to stop and give him a chance to explain. He pulled up next to her, driving slowly so her could talk to her. "Kelsi please, it's not true."

"You are a consummate actor, Mr. Evans," Kelsi snapped through her tears. "You know what makes me mad, though?" She stopped and looked straight at him, and he stepped on the brake. "What makes me really angry is that I believed you. I believed that you actually cared about me the way I cared about you. We have common ground, you know? We both love music so much. Well, you win Ryan. You love it more than I do, because I would never use someone like you did. Tell your sister the part's hers." And she walked away. Ryan followed, wincing as Kelsi stumbled in her heels.

"At least let me give you a ride home," he said quietly. "Come on, Kelsi. I owe you that much." She couldn't argue with him on that point, but she said nothing as she walked around the car and climbed into the passenger seat. But as they neared her street, Ryan couldn't keep quiet anymore.

"Do you think so little of me?" he asked. "No, I'm serious. Do you think I would do something so cruel as to ask you to prom just because Sharpay told me to?"

"It wouldn't be the first time you followed her blindly," she bit back.

"That's not fair, Kelsi. We were both guilty of that…I thought we promised we wouldn't begrudge each other. We were in the same boat after all." He resisted the urge to slam his hand down on the steering wheel; getting angry wouldn't solve anything.

"Well that was before I realized you didn't mean it. I honestly thought you'd grown." She was crying again, but Ryan just sighed.

"And I thought you were the one person who really knew me." She choked back a sob and wiped her eyes.

"Let me out. I'll walk from here." He shook his head violently.

"Are you crazy? It's late, and I'm not letting you walk alone in the dark." But when he pulled up to the stop sign around the corner from her house, she opened the door. He reached over and grabbed her hand as she moved to step out.

"Let go of my hand. You've hurt me more than I thought possible, and maybe that's my own fault."

"Kelsi you _have _to believe me when I tell you the only reason I asked you to prom is because I like you…a lot." She looked back and stared at him for several moments, searching for the sincerity in his eyes. She must have found it because she sighed, finally nodding through her tears.

"I believe you Ryan, but that doesn't change the fact that I'm hurt. And I know you don't understand, but we'll talk later. Right now, I just need to be alone. It's okay, my house is just around that corner."

"Kelsi…"

"Please leave," she pulled her arm from his grasp and stepped out. "Don't worry, I'll walk." And she shut the door. He watched her walk away from him, and this time he didn't resist the urge as his hand came down hard on the steering wheel. He sped away, his vision blurring through his tears. He didn't stop until he pulled up into his driveway, and he ignored the look he got from his father and mother as he stormed through the front door a full two hours before curfew.

"Ducky what's -"

"I don't want to talk about it," he snapped at his mother, who stood frozen in the hallway. He bounded up the stairs and slammed his door shut, leaving him in the darkness of his room. He quickly turned on his stereo, hoping to drown out his sobs with the soundtrack to _Carousel. _

Sometime later, Ryan awoke to someone shaking his shoulder violently. He opened his eyes to see both of his parents standing at the edge of his bed. His father held a phone in his hand, and his mother was crying.

"What's wrong?" he asked blearily, the events of earlier forgotten momentarily in the haze of sleep.

"It's Kelsi," Mr. Evans said simply, and it all came rushing back. "We have to get to the hospital." Ryan was out of bed in an instant, his tuxedo completely wrinkled and messed. He must have fallen asleep crying, and he glanced at the glowing 11:22 on his nightstand quickly as he changed and threw on sandals.

"What happened?" He followed his parents down the stairs and to the car, not even caring that Sharpay wasn't home yet.

"Kelsi's father said something about a speeding car. Apparently it came around the corner too fast, and Kelsi didn't have time to get out of the way." Ryan stopped dead in his tracks.

"Oh my God, this is my fault. I knew I should have driven her all the way home. But she was so mad at me, I honestly didn't think anything would happen on the one block to her house." Mr. Evans moved to his son's side and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"I can't tell you this is going to be easy for you. I imagine the Nielsens will have something to say to you. But all that matters right now is that you're there for Kelsi."

"Wait, she's alive?" Ryan felt a weight being lifted from his heart.

"Yes she is," his father replied as they got in the car and drove toward the hospital. "Thhe car that hit her was only going about thirty, and she hit her head on the cement."

"Oh thank God, I thought…" he couldn't even voice his thoughts aloud, and he felt the tears welling up in his eyes as he pictured the scene. His stomach did flips as he tried to think of something to say to Kelsi's parents. He promised them he'd look out for their only little girl, and he'd failed them. When they pulled up, Ryan tried to scrub his face clean. He'd done a lot of thinking in the car, and he was going to face this like a man. But as he walked into the emergency room and saw Mrs. Nielsen crying into her husband's arms, he felt the tears coming again.

They didn't register his presence at first, and Ryan made it all the way to them before Mr. Nielsen looked up. Something passed between the two, and Ryan knelt down to speak to them quietly despite the fury in the man's face.

"You have to know," he said, "that I love your daughter very much. I didn't realize it myself until I tried to imagine what my life would be like without her on the car ride here. She is my inspiration on stage and in life, and I hope that someday she will forgive me."

"For what?" Ryan took a deep breath, a little hopeful that Mrs. Nielsen didn't _sound_ mad.

"Several weeks ago, we started rehearsals for our Spring Musical. Kelsi was so excited about composing another show - she's really talented." He looked at them, not sure why he was telling the people who obviously knew that better than he did. "My sister, her ambition gets the way of common sense…she told me to ask Kelsi to the prom to get the duet meant for Troy and Gabriella." Ryan's heart rate sped up as he saw the anger intensify in Mr. Nielsen's eyes, but he plowed on hoping to survive long enough to explain himself.

"My father has made a fortune as a cunning businessman, and you don't grow up in that household without learning a thing or two. I thought I could convince Sharpay that I was going along with her so she wouldn't bug me, but you have to believe me when I tell you that the only reason I asked your daughter to prom is that I couldn't stand the thought of her being on someone else's arm." Mrs. Nielsen looked at the tears rolling down the face of the boy in front of her, then looked at her husband.

"But why was my little girl walking all alone down the street," the man said darkly. Ryan swallowed and nodded, fully expecting and accepting the anger of the man before him.

"That was my fault," Ryan admitted. "Sharpay told Kelsi about her plan to make me ask her to prom; I guess she wasn't getting enough attention. Kelsi was - understandably - upset, and she stormed out of prom. I followed her and I made her get in the car. I was not going to let her walk all the way home from East High. But when we pulled up to the stop sign around the corner, she got out. I tried to get her to get back in, but I didn't try hard enough. I should have insisted, I should have followed her home to make sure she was okay. I was just so…she didn't even want to be around me, and it felt like there was a vice squeezing my heart. So I let her go. And I'll never forget that moment for the rest of my life." He put his hand down in his hands, crying silently in front of Kelsi's parents. But when he felt a hand on the back of his head he looked up and both of them pulled Ryan into their arms.

"Life isn't always fair," Mr. Nielsen was saying, "And we all do things we wish we could take back, or do differently. I'm not going to say that everything will be okay, we don't know that. But as long as you're here, you're family." Finally, Ryan broke down, and his parents joined the group as the boy sobbed into Mrs. Nielsen's shoulder.

Sometime later, a doctor in a long white lab coat exited the ER doors and looked down at his clipboard. "Kelsi Nielsen?" Ryan jumped up beside her parents, and his father pushed him to follow as the doctor beckoned them over.

"Go, son. You're mother and I have to get home to deal with Sharpay, but you'll be fine. Call us if you need anything." Ryan quickly hugged his parents, doubting at all that they would actually "deal" with Sharpay. They would sit her down and lecture her while she pretended to listen, then she would act contrite and loving for the night, and be back to her old self the next morning. Ryan jogged to catch up with the Nielsens as the doctor led them to a small office.

"Kelsi's stable," he said right off the bat, earning a sigh of relief from the three visitors. "But I'm afraid the impact of the crash damaged her lower spinal cord, and the swelling in her back is inhibiting certain nervous system functions."

"What does that mean?" Mrs. Nielsen asked.

"It means that your daughter is paralyzed, from the waist down. It's most likely only temporary paralysis, but only time can tell. Usually with cases like this, the earlier we detect the swelling, the faster the recovery." Mrs. Nielsen collapsed into a chair, and Ryan felt his chest constrict at the word.

_Paralyzed? Kelsi can't be paralyzed…_

"Can we see her?" This from Mr. Nielsen. The doctor checked his chart and sighed.

"She's still unconscious from the medication, but you're welcome to stay with her in her room. Family only, though," he added with a look at Ryan. "He'll have to come back during visiting hours."

"He's family," Mrs. Nielsen said firmly, and the doctor looked back and forth between the adults and the teen for a moment before sighing in defeat.

"Alright. She's in room 214. That's down the hall to the right there, it'll be the third door on the left. I'll be in tomorrow morning when she's awake to discuss treatment options." Ryan followed Kelsi's parents down the hall, but when they opened the door to her room he couldn't seem to take the steps inside. Mrs. Nielsen finally reached out and grabbed Ryan's hand, pulling the boy in after her and her husband.

Kelsi was sleeping in the bed, the covers pulled up to her chest covering her hospital gown. Ryan briefly wondered what had happened to her beautiful prom dress, but dismissed the thought just as quickly. He simply stared at the girl lying so helplessly in the hospital bed. There was a bandage on her head, presumably where she'd fallen and hit her head, and he could see small scrapes and bruises forming where she'd most likely rolled on the street after the accident. Her parents stood on either side of the bed holding onto their little girl's hands, and Ryan felt like a voyeur as he watched Mrs. Nielsen lean over and kiss Kelsi on the forehead and whisper words of love to her.

He still stood there as they settled into chairs, completely intent on sleeping (as best they could) in the most comfortable positions they could manage. The soft beep of the monitors was lulling Ryan to sleep, and he was shocked to note that it was just after two in the morning. It seemed like an eternity ago that his parents had woken him up, and he hadn't realized they'd sat in the waiting room for that long.

"Ryan, you should try and get some sleep," Mrs. Nielsen's voice floated across the darkened room, and he took a hesitant step forward.

"Just a sec," he said, and stepped outside.

"Can I help you?" the nearest orderly stopped him in the hallway. Ryan looked at the older woman and took a deep breath.

"Yes I'm here with Kelsi Nielsen. She's my…sister, and our mother needs something more comfortable to sleep on than the chair." The orderly looked at Ryan skeptically, and he knew she didn't believe him.

"I'll send someone with a rollaway bed, sir." Ryan thanked her and walked away quickly before she could question him further. Ryan had just stepped back inside the room when the knock came.

"Here's the bed you requested, sir," a shorter, Hispanic man rolled in a folded up cot and placed it by the window. He unfolded it to reveal a pre-made bed, complete with sheets and three pillows. Without another word he left, and Ryan looked at the two adults.

"I thought you should have something better to sleep on than the chair, Mrs. Nielsen." She smiled at him as she sat on the bed, and patted the space next to her. He moved hesitantly over and joined her, unsurprised when she slipped an arm around his shoulders.

"My name is Katherine," she said simply. "And that is David." Ryan's eyes widened and he stood.

"Katy's right," David added. "I have a feeling we're going to be seeing a lot of you around, son, so you might as well get used to it."

"Yes sir, I mean David." His embarrassing stuttering was cut off by a wide yawn, and Katherine directed him to the chair as she tossed pillows to each of them.

"One for everyone," she chuckled, and Ryan and David settled down in the chairs as she laid out on the bed. Soon the adults were fast asleep, but Ryan sat in the chair completely awake. He watched the steady rise and fall of Kelsi's chest as she breathed and listened to the beeping of the machine keeping the time of her heart, and he slowly fell asleep.

When he woke up, David and Katherine were gone, but a note told him they were in the cafeteria and to call them on the hospital-issued pager if Kelsi woke up. Ryan's eyes moved from the paper to the girl in the bed, but she was still sleeping. Nurses had come and gone in the night to monitor her vital signs, and Ryan had woken up for each one. Each time the prognosis was the same: "We'll know more in the morning."

Ryan stepped up next to the bed and brushed a stray lock of brown hair away from her face. How had he missed her beauty all these years? But even as he asked himself that, he knew the answer. She'd been hiding, just like he had. Ryan knelt down and grabbed her hand, encasing it in his larger one. Her fingers were long and slender, perfect for playing the piano.

"I'm here, Kels. Me and your mom and dad are right here. We love you." He whispered the last and kissed her forehead before standing up. He needed some food, and the cafeteria seemed like just the right place, so he scribbled a note under the Nielsens' letting him know he was headed to the cafeteria in case they didn't meet on the way and then left.

Thirty minutes and ten sets of directions later, he stepped through the double doors into a room that was about half the size of the cafeteria at East High. He stepped up to the counter and ordered a simple ham and cheese sandwich with chips and a water, and he thanked the lady as she handed the tray across to him. He didn't see Kelsi's parents in the small room, but he guessed they'd gone back to Kelsi's room in the half-hour it had taken him to find this place. For the next thirty minutes he spent his time nibbling on his food and trying to guess why passersby were visiting the hospital.

Realizing his thoughts were bordering on the macabre, he trashed the remaining third of his sandwich and made his way back to room 214. But as he approached, he realized the door was open and Kelsi's parents were sitting on her bed holding her as she cried. He paused in the hallway and watched as she processed what the doctors had told her. But her dad whispered something in her ear and she smiled, and Ryan felt his heart lighten. Katherine looked up and saw him but she didn't clue the rest of her family in. Her expression clearly asked Ryan to join them, but he shook his head and leaned against a wall, waiting for the family moment to end. David had seen the exchange and glanced back at Ryan before sitting down and talking seriously with Kelsi about something Ryan couldn't make out. It became obvious, however, when Kelsi looked over her father's shoulder right at him and smiled. David patted her shoulder and kissed her head as he ushered his wife out and closed the door.

"Go see her," Katherine urged Ryan as they joined him in the hallway. "She wants to see you." Ryan took a deep breath and put one foot in front of the other until he was standing right in front of her door. More out of habit than anything, he knocked twice before opening the door. She was sitting up, probably with the help of the electric bed, and he stopped as she looked up through her tears. Suddenly, Ryan couldn't stop his own tears, and he was crying as she beckoned him over.

"I'm-" but she held out her hand and shook her hand.

"Come here," she said simply. "Hold my hand," she asked, and he reached for her immediately. She pulled him to her side, and as he sat on the edge of the bed she wrapped her arms around his neck. His arms moved to circle her waist, and they held on to each other.

"Kelsi, about last night…" he started, but she pulled away and put a hand over his mouth.

"Ryan, I don't want to talk right now. This…whatever it is," she gestured to her legs, "I don't really understand it right now. We can talk later. Right now, I just…I need you to be here." He nodded and pulled her to him again, vowing silently to never leave her side again.

Ryan held true to his promise. Eventually, with the proper treatment, the swelling in Kelsi's back diminished and she began her rehabilitation therapy. Ryan was there for every session, and he even gave up his part in the spring musical to sit with her in the audience as Troy and Gabriella stole the show. Ryan clapped the loudest as Sharpay received the Julliard scholarship; though his sister would always be a manipulative and cunning woman, she was still his sister. They had a mutually understanding relationship now, and Sharpay even helped Kelsi when Ryan couldn't be around for one reason or another.

They both took a semester off of school to finish out Kelsi's therapy, and they would both start at U of A in January. But for Ryan, seeing Kelsi every day wasn't enough anymore, and as time wore on he found it harder and harder to go home every night after leaving the Nielsen residence. So Christmas morning he found himself driving over to his girlfriend's house with a little more than nervous jitters in his stomach.

Her mother cried when he knelt in front of her wheelchair, holding a ring in one hand and Kelsi's hand in the other. She leaned forward enough to hug him to the point of suffocation, and they cut their kiss short in front of her parents when David cleared his throat.

When the day finally came the following spring, everyone had come back into town for the event. Troy and Gabriella stood as best man and maid of honor, and Martha, Sharpay, and Taylor all wore bridesmaid dresses. Sharpay's new boyfriend, Chris, was sitting in the front row with Ryan's parents. The Evans had rented East High for the event, and Ryan stood center stage as he waited for his bride to be pushed in her wheelchair down the center aisle by her father.

But Kelsi had dreamed, ever since she was a little girl, that her dad would walk her down the aisle at her wedding. So she stopped him at the top of the house and looked up at him.

"I'll walk, Daddy," she told him, and he shook his head.

"You didn't take your painkillers because you wanted to be clear headed." His voice was laced with worry.

"I know it will hurt, Daddy, but I want to walk down the aisle in my wedding." She saw his eyes become watery, and she felt her own tears springing to the surface. "Please Daddy, don't cry, this is hard for me too." He cupped her cheek and wiped away his tears.

"I understand, baby girl. Come on, I'll hold your hand." And as the opening strains of _You Are the Music in Me_ played, she walked down the aisle toward her future.

* * *

Okay, I put the song I used up on boxstr. For those wondering what the heck that is, go to my profile and click on the link under the Notes section for _Pulling Together_. And speaking of, apparently I have a thing for traumatizing Kelsi...I should probably see someone about that.


End file.
